What Are the Rights of a Copyright Owner?

Introduction

Copyright law provides legal protection for writers, actors, composers, and artists. They are given the exclusive authority to create a copy, a second, and assign work. These can also transfer the information to another organization. Copyright registration is important as it certifies you as the legal owner of the work. According to the Copyright Act, there are certain exclusive rights of a copyright owner to manage its usage. The rights differ depending on the sort of work that is protected.

What is Copyright?

Copyright is a type of law governing intellectual property. It gives the copyright holder exclusive rights to select the way their content can be utilized. The expression of ideas and information in concrete media is protected by copyright registration. Following are the different works protected under the Copyright Act.

• Writing works – publications, diary entries, articles presented at conferences, poems, etc.
• Artistic creations – digital pictures, artwork, sculptures, photos, etc.
• Dramatic works – scripts, plays, etc.
• Music compositions – music scores and notation
• Television shows and movies – radio broadcasts and sound recordings ( both recorded music and other sounds.)
• Unpublished works –  websites, and computer programs are all subject to copyright laws.

The copyright of a work of art is not always owned by the author or creator. There is a time limit on copyright registration.

Section 17 of the Copyright Act,1957

Copyright Registration holders have exclusive rights over the content in which they hold ownership under Section 17 of the Copyright Act of 1957, including:

• Reproducing the work through photocopying, manual copying, recording, filming, and scanning
• Content publication, whether in print or digital form
• Distributing the content, such as by emailing it or making it available on the internet.
• Modifying the text, whether by translation or arranging
• Delivering the information to subscribers or broadcasting it.
• Certain actions are not covered by copyright registration and do not require permission from the copyright owner, such as linking to copyright content that is accessible on a social platform or lending copyrighted content.
• The rights of the copyright owner vary depending on the sort of work that is copyright protected.

Unless the Section 17 of the Copyright Act provides an exception, you must obtain consent from the copyright owner before using any content protected by one of these rights.

What Are the Rights of a Copyright Owner?

A Copyright Owner has mainly 2 types of Rights which are described below-:

1. Economic rights of a Copyright Owner -: The term “economic right” refers to any legal claim that benefits satisfy the owner financially. Under the definition of copyright, the owner’s economic rights are outlined in Section 14 of the principal Act. There are five considered Economic rights for a copyright owner.

• Right to reproduce the work: Reproduction is the process of creating a duplicate of previous work and changing it by adding, revising, or otherwise altering it. It simply refers to the right to copy.
• Right to distribute in market: Similar to the right to reproduce, the owner of a work protected by copyright also has the right to distribute it and profit from it. The act of distribution may take the shape of a sale, a free loan or a loan for payment, a rental, or a complimentary gift.
• Right to update the public: It refers to releasing or making the work or product accessible to the public by broadcasting, simulcasting, or webcasting. If someone communicates a work to the public while not being the owner, which can be regarded as an act of infringement.
• The right to adapt: A copyrighted work can be converted, altered or rearranged, which includes the right of adaptation. Computer programs are not covered by these rights. This is only applicable to musical, literary, or dramatic works.
• Right to translate: The owner of a copyrighted work has the right to translate his work into whatever language he chooses.

2. Moral Rights of a Copyright Owner -:  Section 57 of the Principal Act covers three fundamental moral rights for the rights of a copyright owner.

• Rights to integrity: The owner of a copyright has the right to take reasonable steps to prevent unauthorized use of the reputation of his own creation.

• Rights to paternity: A copyright owner’s right to claim and prevent others from claiming ownership of his copyrighted work is referred to as a paternity right.

• Rights to retraction: Retraction is the act of retracting an earlier statement. The author may feel the need to sacrifice his or her rights to uphold the honor of his or her work, The Principal Act gives the author the option to stop publishing his work under section 57. In simple words, it means giving up his legal rights to uphold his integrity or reputation.

Suggested Read- Copyright law and its significance in a business

Conclusion

The rights granted under the provisions have outlined the significance and importance attached to obtaining the title of ownership, particularly as a means of honoring the efforts made by an artist throughout his career to produce valuable results, and their rights have been protected from both an economic and moral point of view. The copyright Amendment Act has also calmed and removed the difficulties faced by artists and broadcasters by adding specific measures.